Kill Bill: Vol. 1 (2003)

Kill Bill: Volume 1
**** (out of four)
Review by Joseph Lopez

I'm going to say it. Quentin Tarantino is the best director in the history of film. It's a bold statement. One a lot of people will likely disagree with. But I stand by it. Especially after seeing Kill Bill: Volume 1, the fourth movie by Quentin Tarantino. A film that, in the hands of a lesser director, could have been a horrible mess. Under Quentin's expert eye, however, Kill Bill: Volume 1 is nothing short of amazing.

Uma Thurman stars as The Bride, a woman with a vendetta that would make Charles Bronson say damn. The Bride, also known as Black Mamba, once worked for the Deadly Viper Assassination Squad. She is betrayed as the team, led by Bill (yes, that Bill), kills everybody in The Bride's wedding party. Except, even after taking a bullet to the head, the Bride is still alive. After four years of being in a coma, The Bride wakes up with only one goal. Revenge.

The entire movie focuses on The Bride seeking revenge on the people who attempted to kill her. These include suburban mother Vernita Green, played by Vivica A. Fox, and Japanese underworld queen O-Ren Ishii, entertainingly portrayed by Lucy Lui. It's fairly obvious from the start that The Bride will be successful in her goal. The movie isn't titled Kill Bill because she's trying to kill him. It's named Kill Bill because she will kill him. The fun of it is watching as The Bride overcomes all odds to accomplish this task. The fight scenes are impeccably choreographed, making them equally brutal and beautiful. Make no mistake, this is a graphically violent film. Limbs are sliced off, heads are decapitated, and blood sprays out of human bodies like water out of an open fire hydrant on a hot summer day. This is easily the most overtly violent film released in years. Yet it works. In fact, it makes the movie.

Possibly the best part of Kill Bill: Volume 1 is what we don't see. That being Quentin Tarantino, sitting behind the screen, winking at us. This isn't a serious movie. It's not supposed to be. Tarantino's not looking to tell a profound story with three-dimensional characters. His goal is as simple as The Bride's. Quentin wants to make a movie that demonstrates the Japanese film culture, from samurai pictures of the past to today's ever-popular anime movies. He creates a world entirely set within it's own form of reality. Why do we accept that The Bride can kill nearly a hundred sword wielding killers at once? The question should be why shouldn't we accept it? The movie says it can happen, so it does.

Kill Bill: Volume 1 is perfect in every sense of the word. The fact that Quentin Tarantino could create such an entertaining film based mostly on its style and tongue-in-cheek-ness proves his place in movie history as a master of the art. To sum it up simply, Kill Bill: Volume 1 is astonishing and easily a front-runner for best film of the year.

-Joe Lopez
Joemovie@aol.com

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X-RT-RatingText: 4/4